The National Academies Teacher Advisory Council began in November 2002 when Dr. Bruce Alberts, then president of the National Academies, convened the first Teacher Advisory Council. This council was formed to enable classroom teachers to bring the wisdom of their practice into the Academies’ work in education. That opportunity brought outstanding teachers together, empowering them as a community to “make a difference.”

The current members of the Teacher Advisory Council include teachers of science, mathematics, technology, reading, and English as a second language across the elementary, middle, and secondary grades. They teach in inner city, rural, and suburban schools. Many are recipients of the Presidential Award for Mathematics or Science Teaching. At least one member from each educational level (elementary, middle, secondary) is certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. A primary criterion for serving on the council is that each member must spend at least 50 percent of her or his time in the classroom working directly with students.

Over the past six years, the members of the council have spent substantial time in meetings providing advice to staff from across the National Academies who work on many aspects of education. The council was initially established for three years, after which an evaluation of its efficacy was undertaken. The Governing Board of the National Research Council (NRC) deemed the work of the council important enough to the education mission of the Academies that in 2005 it designated the Teacher Advisory Council as a standing board in the NRC’s Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education.